Stop using your phone when you work out

We’re all guilty of gazing at our phones too much: when we’re at work, when we’re in bed… and when we exercise.

A new study from Hiram University in Ohio has determined just how a big a hit your workout takes if you focus on your smartphone instead of, y’know, actually working out.

After analysing 45 college students who underwent postural stability tests while using phones, researchers determined that texting makes stability 45 percent worse, while talking reduces it by 19 percent.

“If you’re talking or texting on your cell phone while you’re putting in your daily steps, your attention is divided by the two tasks and that can disrupt your postural stability,” said Dr Michael Rebold, assistant professor of integrative exercise science, in a statement.

This can “possibly predispose individuals to other greater inherent risks such as falls and musculoskeletal injuries,” he continued.

It’s no surprise your phone is one of the top factors that can derail a workout — glance around any gym and you’ll see people browsing Instagram from the cross-trainer or texting next to the weights, oblivious to everyone trying to get past them to the dumbbells.

Every moment you’re on your phone during a workout is a moment you’re not working out. You’re distracted, you’re not putting in maximum effort, and that’s going to waste your time and cost you results in the long-term.

And as Dr Rebold said, phone use can be kind of dangerous — scrolling through emoji while you’re using the leg press, instead of focusing on your form, is a fantastic way to injure yourself.

Rules of snapping a selfie at the gym. Rule #1: Spend no more than 10 seconds taking it. Rule #2: Never snap a selfie at the gym, ever.

If you’re addicted to both your phone and to fitness, here’s some tips:

Leave your phone behind. The most obvious advice. Studies have suggested the mere presence of a smartphone is a major distraction, even if you’re not using it, so stash yours in a bag or locker. While not having your phone on you can feel equivalent to not wearing pants, ask yourself if you really need it when you’re out for a jog or hitting the weights room. (If you are that person who needs to rest their phone next to their yoga mat, you might have a deeper problem.)

Put your phone on aeroplane mode, and keep it in aeroplane mode. It’s true that saving your workout plan to your phone is usually more convenient than writing it down on good ol’ fashioned pen and paper. So if you need your phone handy to keep track of your exercises, use it in aeroplane mode — this is a great strategy to break the habit of absent-mindedly checking Facebook between sets.

Invest in workout gear that stows your phone. If you still need think you your phone while you exercise, at least try to keep it out of sight or zipped away so you can more easily resist its siren song. Most activewear nowadays comes with phone-sized pockets or pouches that’ll keep your device out of your hand.

Cue up all your music beforehand. If you only rely on your phone to supply workout music, that’s A-OK: The Hiram University study found listening to music on your phone has no impact on postural stability. Just make sure you’re not wasting time adding new songs to your Spotify queue (that wastes as much time as texting), and choose a set of headphones that aren’t going to fall out your ears all the time or get in the way.